In this article I am going to talk about Exposure Fusion (EF). A lot of photographers nowadays are familiar with High Dynamic Range (HDR) Techniques. Which is mostly used to capture the high contrast scenes by taking a series of "Bracketed" exposures or shots that capture a wider range of light than the camera can handle in a single shot. After that the photos are blended using any of the HDR software (e.g. Dynamic Photo HDR). Mostly the result with have high level of color saturation along with extraordinary shadow and highlight details. Which again is tone mapped to create the final result.

Exposure Fusion (EF) is new approach to blend the bracketed image. The EF does not require tone mapping step as the result does not produce a photo with excessive dynamic range. Yet the result appears to be more realistic and tends not to exaggerate the tones, colors, shadows and highlights. For me I find EF to be more practical and produces results in which I can feel more natural to the eye.

The example above is made by blending (5 photos of the same scene) of a scene from Bediah Sands at sunrise. Below you can see a sample of the overexposed and underexposed shots, I have taken 5 bracketed shots then exported them to 16bit TIFF files. After that I used Photomatix Pro 4.0 to blend the bracketed exposures. The final result of the shot (above) shows more balanced light in the scene yet looks very realistic and natural. Nevertheless I made little final tweaks and adjustments to the photo in Photoshop CS5 .. From my personal experience sometimes you just need 2 shots to make a perfect blend.

Go ahead try it , it's fun and it expands the limitations of the light range the camera can take.

I have always been fascinated by the desert and the sand dunes. The curves, the texture and the golden color at the sunset. I took a quick trip to Sharqiah Sands (around 250 KM away from Muscat) and took this shot during sunset, luckily the sky was clear and no wind to blow the sand on my face and my camera. And here is the result. In the photo I tried to show the three things I like about sand and desert (Texture , curves, and the golden tone of the), Also another version in Monochrome is available for the photo. Please like if you like what you see :)

If you are ever in Shariqah Sands for photography:

Look for curves and pleasant sand dune shapes.

Sunset/sunrise are the best times to shoot sand dunes as you get the smooth light and warm light that makes the sand shine in golden color and yet you get a pleasant contrast.

If you don't have a wide angle lens, don't worry. Use a zoom lens to capture intimate landscapes in the area.

If it's windy, it's wise to cover your camera and lens. And avoid at any time changing the lens (best to do that inside a confined space (e.g. inside your car or your tent).

Ahmed Al-Shukaili

I am a serious amateur photographer based in Oman. Mainly shooting landscape and portraits. A member of the FIAP (International Federation for Photography Art) recently been certified as an Artist FIAP member.

Participated in several local and international exhibitions and competitions.

My career is in information management , mainly in the Oil & Gas industry.